Texas Woman’s University’s newly established Student Journal (TWUSJ) seeks to provide opportunity and accessibility for students.
The TWUSJ is a faculty-led publication and peer-reviewed journal that highlights the writing and research of TWU students. The editorial team consists of two faculty members, two librarians and two students, and it is a part of the Open Journal System. The journal is open to all TWU students in every area of study regardless of their education level, and it encourages people of color and women to submit their work.
“In a nutshell, this is an open access journal that goes through the peer-review process, where all students regardless of their field can submit their work,” co-founder of the journal Ahmet Tmava said. “I don’t see ourselves as just gatekeepers of this material, and we can do this today, because of the development of communication and education through technology. We use this technology to get students to publish and also provide a mentorship role to help students make their paper better.”
Tmava mentions the journal’s aspect of preservation. He feels that the journal provides a form of preservation that most students are not always offered.
“We are giving the opportunity for students to have their work out there regardless of level, Tmava said. “Having myself gone through that process, I have papers in English literature even in my undergrad, and even though now I have a higher level of education. I can’t express what I felt at the time. It has a value to a particular time and therefore in some of the papers that I was encouraged to publish but I didn’t have the confidence to push that forward. Thinking back, I wish that I had done that because I can’t even find what that paper is today.”
The journal has a publication around late December to early January. Their first publication was published at the end of 2021 and highlighted six different pieces from distinct areas of study. The pieces covered a great range of topics from bilingual education to the mental health of African immigrant women.
The first issue of the TWUSJ also makes note of the journal’s advisory board. Tmava expressed that the advisory board serves to improve student’s works to their full potential. Tmava highlights the significance of the journal’s advisory board and the work they do as experts in their fields.
“In the first publication, we have six articles, which is not bad for the beginning,” Tmava said. “We have a piece on who we are and a piece on the advisory board. In the advisory board, we tried to include people from different areas. This is very important, because we try to include champions from different fields because as we move forward, we need help, especially in the areas we don’t have expertise.”
The next issue of the TWUSJ is currently under the works and should be published some time before or after the end of the 2022 fall semester. Tmava expresses that there is still work to be done but the final product is close to finished.
If students are interested in submitting their work to the TWUSJ, students must be currently enrolled at TWU or are two years post-graduation, and no fee is required. For more information, students can visit the TWUSJ website.
Karyme Flores can be reached via email at kflores22@twu.edu.
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